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1 Wednesday, 10 February 2016
2 [Open session]
3 [Status Conference]
4 [The appellants entered court]
5 --- Upon commencing at 2.59 p.m.
6 JUDGE AGIUS: Good afternoon, everybody.
7 Madam Registrar, or Mr. Registrar, could you call the case,
8 please.
9 THE REGISTRAR: Good afternoon, Your Honour. This is case
10 IT-08-91-A, the Prosecutor versus Mico Stanisic and Stojan Zupljanin.
11 JUDGE AGIUS: Thank you.
12 Could I have the appearances of the parties.
13 Prosecution first.
14 MS. FINNIN: Good afternoon, Your Honour. Sarah Finnin for the
15 Prosecution, appearing with Aditya Menon and Janet Stewart, our
16 Case Manager.
17 JUDGE AGIUS: Okay. Thank you.
18 Appearances for Mr. Stanisic.
19 MR. ZECEVIC: Good afternoon, Your Honour. Slobodan Zecevic
20 appearing for Mr. Stanisic today. Thank you.
21 JUDGE AGIUS: Thank you.
22 And appearances for Mr. Zupljanin.
23 MS. CMERIC: [Interpretation] Good afternoon, Mr. President,
24 Tatjana Cmeric appearing today for Mr. Zupljanin. Thank you.
25 JUDGE AGIUS: Thank you.
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1 Before I commence, I would like to know whether all -- whether
2 everyone here can hear and understand the proceedings in a language that
3 they understand, particularly the accused.
4 Mr. Stanisic.
5 THE APPELLANT STANISIC: [Interpretation] Yes, I can hear the
6 interpretation, I understand.
7 JUDGE AGIUS: Mr. Zupljanin.
8 THE APPELLANT ZUPLJANIN: [Interpretation] Everything is all
9 right. Thank you.
10 JUDGE AGIUS: So this Status Conference is called in accordance
11 with Rule 65 bis of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence. Rule 65 bis
12 paragraph (B) requires a Status Conference to be convened within 120 days
13 after the filing of a Notice of Appeal, and thereafter within 120 days
14 after the last Status Conference. The reason or the purpose for such a
15 Status Conference is to allow any person in custody pending appeal the
16 opportunity to raise issues in relation thereto, including the mental and
17 physical condition of that person.
18 In the present case the parties filed Notices of Appeal on 13th
19 May 2013, and the first Status Conference was held on 1st September 2013.
20 The second to eighth Status Conferences were held on 11 December 2013,
21 9th April, 24 July, and 12 November 2014, and 9th March, 30th June, and
22 15th October 2015, respectively. Today's Status Conference is the ninth
23 in this case and was scheduled pursuant to an order signed by me and
24 issued on the 11th of January, 2016.
25 The first item on the agenda for today's Status Conference is for
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1 me to inquire about the detention conditions and health of the two
2 appellants, Mr. Stanisic and Mr. Zupljanin. So I am going to inquire
3 into the status of your detention conditions and health situations.
4 Mr. Stanisic, I start with you. If you have any concerns in
5 relation to the condition of your detention of your state of health, I
6 would invite to you raise them now; and if you prefer, this discussion
7 with take place in private session.
8 THE APPELLANT STANISIC: [Interpretation] Your Honour, no need.
9 As for my health, it's average. The conditions are bearable for the time
10 being, and there are no changes to speak of.
11 JUDGE AGIUS: Thank you.
12 Mr. Zupljanin, same question to you. And if you prefer, the
13 discussion can take place in private session.
14 THE APPELLANT ZUPLJANIN: [Interpretation] Your Honour, I don't
15 think there's any need for private session, although I would prefer to be
16 able to say something nice, but I can't, unfortunately. You have
17 probably been informed that two days ago Mr. Zdravko Tolimir died and we
18 were all hard hit by his death. Regrettably, he is the third person to
19 die in the last six months, and it is very hard on all of us.
20 JUDGE AGIUS: Thank you. But otherwise your state of detention
21 and state of health is okay? You have no complaints?
22 THE APPELLANT ZUPLJANIN: [Interpretation] Well, "panta rhei," all
23 things in a flux, nothing changes, nothing happens. The time does its
24 work, and as I said last time, we are just getting older, Your Honour.
25 JUDGE AGIUS: Yes, you're not the only one who is getting older,
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1 Mr. Zupljanin. Thank you so much.
2 I will now deal with the recent procedural history. Before
3 turning to any issues that the two appellants may wish to raise, I will
4 outline the recent procedural developments in this case. Even though
5 this information is known to the parties, one of the purposes of a
6 Status Conference is to inform the people outside the Tribunal of what is
7 happening in a given particular case.
8 In setting out the procedural history, I will focus on decisions
9 an orders issued since the last Status Conference which, as I said
10 before, was held on the 15th of October of last year. I recall that on
11 the 30th October 2015, the Appeals Chamber issued a Scheduling Order
12 setting 16th December 2015 as the date for the appeal hearing in this
13 days. On 4th December 2015, the Appeals Chamber issued an addendum to
14 the Scheduling Order for the appeal hearing, in which it set out the
15 timetable for the hearing and invited the parties to address specific
16 issues in their submissions. The Prosecution filed an urgent motion
17 seeking a revision of the timetable for the appeal hearing on 7th
18 December 2015 which the Appeals Chamber granted in part in its decision
19 of 11th December 2015.
20 The Appeals Chamber heard oral arguments of all parties in a long
21 sitting on the 16th of December, 2015. I take this opportunity to once
22 more thank the parties for their submissions on the day and their full
23 co-operation throughout the hearing. The Appeals Chamber will issue
24 judgement in due course and I can also inform you that for the time being
25 at least we are on track. We have a date in mind and an hopefully we
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1 will be able to stick to it.
2 Last item on the agenda, whether Prosecution or Defence would
3 like to raise any issues.
4 I will start with the Prosecution. Would you like to raise --
5 MS. FINNIN: Nothing to raise, Your Honour.
6 JUDGE AGIUS: Okay. Thank you.
7 Counsel for Mr. Stanisic.
8 MR. ZECEVIC: Thank you, Your Honour. We have nothing to raise.
9 JUDGE AGIUS: Thank you.
10 And counsel for Mr. Zupljanin.
11 MS. CMERIC: Yes, Mr. President, nothing to raise at this time.
12 Thank you.
13 JUDGE AGIUS: Okay. Thank you very much, Ms. Cmeric.
14 I think that's all. This concludes today's Status Conference. I
15 thank you all for your attendance and co-operation and call these
16 proceedings to a close. Thank you.
17 --- Whereupon the Status Conference adjourned at
18 3.10 p.m.
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